What did you guys think of The Gypsy? For me, it was one of the very few works by RH/ML that I didn't enjoy. I just didn't get it. It was a vague, disjointed series of events and those gypsy brothers came from distant lands or another world or something like that? No, I didn't like it.

The story was straggly and chaotic, and I can't forgive it that. I know, we read it as the Gypsy perceived it, but honestly? I tried read it three times, and I succeeded only on the third try to finish it.

So I forced myself to read it, because well.. it is about Hungarian mythology, and I was curious. I understood the names and other Hungarian texts, so there was no mystical or arcane feeling for me in them (but I understand that it should be).

I missed the descriptions. The nora (a demon) was only "bald-headed". Well, that's a lot, everyone can imagine her now. And the midwife (who were with them) she is just a midwife, no description needed, of course, we all know how this midwife look like. Okay, the Lidérc (another demon) got a proper description with flames, and goose-leg and horseleg-hand.

I assume the birds came from the same world as the humans (I know they mention other world), they just lost their humanity, and travelled out of time, at least when they didn't lost their memories.

Still there was a part I really liked. It was a dialogue that had the same rhytm and structure just like in the folk tales, when the Fair Lady told her minions what to do to perish every one of her enemy (to send a girl to the Raven and drink for the coachman etc..).
It was like when in the Little Red' tale, the girl asks the wolf - 'Grandma, why are your eyes soo big' - 'To see your better' - 'Why are your ears so pointy' - 'To hear your better' etc...

"We don’t like spicy food. Once we found red fang-shaped fruit among the cargo of a shipwreck. We ate it and regretted it loud and long!"

I should really re-read this book. To be honest, I think my comprehension of English wasn't that good back in the day when I first read it and that didn't help, because it isn't the easiest book to read anyway. Kek, it's interesting what you say about the lack of mystical feeling when you know about the mythology already. Do you think it would be the case with any book that borrowed those materials, or did you feel it was something in particular about how the subject matter was dealt with in this story? I'm trying to think back on the few modern books I've read that have dealt with Finnish mythology and if I felt that way too, but I can't think of having read anything where it being mysterious would have been the point as such.

I'm quite a fan of the Boiled in Lead CD based on/inspired by this book by the way - there are several songs that I really love.

“Men it is who think they can rule others' lives but have no bonds to them. Do you think that to bond or not to bond is for you alone to decide?”

(Mar-11-2015, 12:09 PM (UTC))Mervi Wrote: Kek, it's interesting what you say about the lack of mystical feeling when you know about the mythology already. Do you think it would be the case with any book that borrowed those materials, or did you feel it was something in particular about how the subject matter was dealt with in this story?

I think I'm looking for mystery and unknown. I'm not always content when something revealed, sometimes I feel a loss like "Whas this all THIS?!".
Hobb is great in creating mystery and I love thinking about them while reading them.

When there is a name that means something in foreign language and you do or don't know what, you just "listen" to it, and it sounds strange, and the foreign language gives it a second layer. I think the same song has an advantage when sung in a different language than in your mother tongue, because you perceive it more complex, more deep.

"We don’t like spicy food. Once we found red fang-shaped fruit among the cargo of a shipwreck. We ate it and regretted it loud and long!"

I very much agree with what you're saying about foreign language giving another layer to these things. And I have another question if you don't mind: did you think the Hungarian folk themes were used in a way that followed traditions, or was it more like they picked some suitable characters/terms and played with them freely? (I realise I know quite literally nothing about Hungarian mythology/folklore, do you happen to have any recommendations for what I could/should read?)

“Men it is who think they can rule others' lives but have no bonds to them. Do you think that to bond or not to bond is for you alone to decide?”